Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Week 1- Adriana Goracci A01

Week 1: Adriana Goracci A01

The personal experience of professor Valverde in the field of academia described in the article “Fight the Tower: A Call to Action for Women of Color in Academia” is an inspiring piece of work backed up by evidence, that offers a deep insight over the injustices and discrimination that still exist to this day addressed towards the differences of gender, race, ethnicity, class, disability, and motherhood.

Similarly to other great women in the past such as Marie Curie, Malala, and even Frida Kahlo, professor Valverde was able to set a great example for students and generations to come. Her persistence and strength maintained throughout her battle emphasize her determination to obtain what she fairly deserves.

As I was reading, I developed a profound respect towards ms.Valverde because she faced all of her challenges one by one. The bully, the disability extension, the pregnancy and the near-death experience all represented barriers that could have let her down, but she’s still on her feet, fighting and teaching about something that she is really passionate about.

I believe that the saying by professor Ping about, "if one dies and manages to return to life, one gains ten lives", is remarkably true, under so many aspects. In the case of professor Valverde, by going through such a traumatic experience she has gained the determination and strength for fighting for what she believes is right. The saying also applies to my personal experience, even if mine was less traumatic than my professor’s I believe that after I overcame my near-to-death experience, I became so much more passionate and determined about my future expectations and goals.

This article really impacted me because although I can somewhat relate to the author’s story, being a mixed race woman, I did not fully connect as I personally didn’t encounter as many obstacles. However, as I was reading, I would think of my mother, who is originally from Taiwan and moved to the states as a young child. She had undergone same battle that is fought by many other "colored" women all around the world, in order to obtain the same rights and opportunities that are given to other people and overcome many injustices associated with their culture. These are battles that we all need to fight whether we can relate or not because it is an issue that affects many people and holds back natural capacities. My mom is still fighting this discrimination every day since she works in the academia and by setting an example, I do the same.

Question: what are other methods to overcome the discrimination of colored women in academia? Where did all this hate generate from?

References:
- Lester, Evan. “CoPhilosophy.” Credibility and Discrimination - Section H1 Group 4, CoPhilosophy, 1 Jan. 1970, cophilosophy.blogspot.com/2013/02/credibility-and-discrimination-section.html.
- Valverde, K., (2013). “Fight the Tower”: A Call to Action for Women in Academia, 12(2), 367-419. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
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